July 2011


Dear Investor,

These days, government deficits are a major concern for many — from Greece and the rest of the Eurozone to our own rapidly expanding government debt. With all the uncertainty regarding national defaults, persistent unemployment and the depressed housing market, one might believe the markets’ reaction to be obvious. But how have they performed since the beginning of the year?

April 2011

Dear Investor,

Just three months into 2011 and so much has already happened around the world. The first half of February saw the historic resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak after widespread civilian protests. His resignation was followed by more protests in the Middle East and North Africa, with rebellions in Libya escalating to U.S. military involvement. On March 11, a devastating earthquake and tsunami wiped out entire communities in Japan, bringing the third-largest economy in the world to a halt. While everything takes a distant back seat to the tremendous suffering and loss, there are sure to be important market implications from the disaster, especially considering Japan’s...

January 2011

Would a crystal ball that allowed you to see future news and economic reports change your investment strategy? How would you have reacted if you saw the following: in January 2010?

• April 12: “We could be looking at five to eight years before catching up to where we were before the recession began.” — The Wall Street Journal
• May 29: “May 6 brought the ‘Flash Crash,’ a bewildering nearly 1,000-point slide that still defies explanation.” – The Wall Street Journal
• June 28: “We are now, I fear, in the early stages of a third depression.” — The New York Times
• July 23...